Life with Cooper, Tooey, and Carlin, the Irish Water Spaniels

Mr Green, four-and-some years later

Today we had the great good fortune to visit with Linda and one of Tooey’s puppies, Finn, the former Mr Green (Tooey x JJ). Finn is a delightful dog, very friendly and affectionate. Although… not with Tooey so much. He kept just barking at her until finally she showed her teeth and snapped at the air next to his face. Maybe kinda sorta like a mom would do with an unruly puppy.

Once that little bit of correction was in place, we were able to get a photo of Tooey and Finn together. And then, once Tooey was escorted to the car, we were able to get a shot of Finn himself.

Just for comparison, here’s a photo Linda sent us just over 4 years ago, just after getting Finn home.

Now, here are mother and son today.

And here’s the boy himself, years later.

I don’t think they look much alike, except for the widow’s peak at their foreheads, similarly shaped eyes, and their horizontal mutton chops (Tooey’s are currently clipped off). Their heads, coats, and body shape are quite different.

But Finn has something that Tooey doesn’t have. Something Tooey would dearly love to have. Finn has a cockatiel roommate. Whenever the bird chirped or squeaked (just like a squeaky toy), Tooey ran over to the bird’s cage and just stared at the bird, eyes shining. You could just see the speech bubble over her head: “A bird! They have a bird! Oh, I want a bird!”

Finally, we pulled ourselves away and drove home, us to be grateful to puppy people who invite us in for awhile, and Tooey to dream of birds.